Hybrids We Recommend

Unlike the other passenger vehicle categories covered by ForbesAutos.com, such as Sports Cars and SUVs, there aren't many hybrid models on the market at present, so it’s not as challenging to identify top picks as if we had to sort through 30 or more distinct models. Still, it’s a process that requires weighing specs and options along with form, function, and as available, seat time. That's why we put together these expert picks.

How were these selections determined?

+ enlarge image  |  view slideshow >

Best for City Driving:
Toyota Prius

+ enlarge image  |  view slideshow >

Best for Long Trips:
Lexus RX 400h

+ enlarge image  |  view slideshow >

Best for
Towing And Hauling:
Chevrolet Silverado Hybrid/GMC Sierra Hybrid

+ enlarge image  |  view slideshow >

Best for Overall Mileage:
Honda Insight

+ enlarge image  |  view slideshow >

Best for Performance:
Honda Accord Hybrid

You may wonder what makes us qualified to make these recommendations. The editors of ForbesAutos.com have spent hundreds of hours test driving  virtually every new vehicle on the market. We also work with seasoned automotive journalists with expertise in specific fields to make recommendations based on vehicle specifications, test drives as well as subjective appeal.

Ron Cogan, editor of the Green Car Journal, helped determine our hybrid vehicle recommendations. Cogan has been covering alternative-fuel vehicles since before most people knew they even existed and has been an editor and auto writer for 29 years — including six years as feature editor of Motor Trend. He has logged thousands of hours testing production and prototype vehicles around the world and written countless articles explaining their importance to consumers.

After careful consideration and test driving when possible, we came up with the above selections as our best picks for the 2006 model year. Some were easy. The Chevrolet Silverado/GMC Sierra pickups, for instance, get the nod for Best Towing and Hauling with hardly any competition. That’s what they’re made for. The Honda Insight, too, nails the Best for Overall Mileage category. And why wouldn’t it with fuel economy numbers that go up to 66 mpg and an online users group with members claiming better than 80 mpg?

Others required some back-and-forth to establish credentials in a given category. But in the end, our top picks sorted out nicely and in a way that makes us confident we’d personally pick the models named for their respective duties, whether going on a long trip, driving endless miles in town, blasting down winding back roads, or…you get the idea.